No Longer Unworthy
by ladykaylee
Summary: What happens when Robin and Starfire find a way to bring Terra back just in time for Beast Boy's eighteenth birthday? She loves Beast Boy, but coming back from the dead is only half the journey home. BBxTerra, RobxStar. Titans are 17 to 19 years old here
1. Prologue

The whole thing was Robin's idea, actually.

Beast Boy had been constantly moping around in personified "emo" depressed fashion ever since Terra had turned to stone. The final battle with Slade, her sacrifice, the image of her beautiful face looking as though it had never been alive, like she had always been a statue, remained burned in the changeling's mind since the day it happened. The titans thought that, eventually, he would get over it and move on. But what they soon came to realize was that Beast Boy's attraction to Terra was more than just a teenage crush.

Beast Boy loved Terra.

The months wore on, and instead of improving, Beast Boy became more and more depressed. He kept her butterfly hair pin and the silver heart box by his bed constantly. Months turned to years, having been only 14 or 15 at the time of the incident… he didn't remember anymore. To Beast Boy, it seemed like yesterday and yet, like it had been an eternity since he had heard her voice outside of his dreams. Sometimes he felt like he had never really known her at all. He fancied that it had just been one big blurry, blissful, wonderfully teasing nightmare. More than two years had gone by, and while he found it easier to enjoy life and have fun, Terra never left his mind.

It was Robin who decided to do something about it. Around eight months after Terra had turned to stone, he and Starfire took a trip to her home planet of Tamaran, seeking a cure. They informed Cyborg and Raven where they were going, and told them to make sure Beast Boy thought it was just family stuff that Starfire needed to attend to, and Robin was merely accompanying her.

"Ooh, he's gonna meet the parents," Beast Boy had snickered. "Good luck, man. Try not to lose the cat or smash the vase of her grandmother's ashes."

"Beast Boy—" Robin interrupted, embarrassed and aggravated. "I think you've worn out your copy of 'Meet the Parents.'" Beast Boy had shut up after that.

When they got to Tamaran, they were told, among many things: "It's not going to be easy, young earthling. Protect the Princess Starfire. This is a great risk."

_Well_, thought Robin, _it can't be harder than keeping my best kept secret from Starfire._

Robin had always loved Starfire, and it was evident to every single one of the Titans that she loved him as well, except to Robin. But that is not the subject of the matter. Robin and Starfire were on a quest. They were going to get Terra back to Beast Boy, no matter what. Beast Boy's birthday was coming up, and they could think of no better gift than returning Terra to him.

The apothecary in Tamaran gave Starfire a small vial of a deep purple potion that looked faintly like very beautiful gasoline, which Starfire was supposed to drink and then envelop the stone that was Terra in her energy. The danger was, should something—anything—go wrong, Starfire might end up fused to Terra's statue… and then they'd have to make another plaque. The thought of losing Starfire made Robin's inside freeze down to sub-zero temperatures of fear.

After returning from Tamaran, they immediately visited the cave. They had gotten back just in time. At midnight, it would officially be Beast Boy's birthday. Starfire came to a halt in front of the stone statue that was their friend Terra. She looked at the plaque: "Terra. A Teen Titan. A True Friend." Clutching the vial in her hand and trembling slightly, she opened it and stepped forward. Robin put a hand on her shoulder.

"Starfire… are you sure you want to do this?" he asked her worriedly. She turned to face him.

"I want to help friend Beast Boy, Robin… this is the only way…"

Robin could tell Starfire was scared, and she had all the right to be. A mental image of her fused into rock flashed before his eyes. Before he registered what he had even imagined, he felt his eyes prickle, and began to blink furiously.

_Thank God I'm wearing a mask_… he thought. Before his courage left him, he embraced Starfire, his stomach giving an odd little somersault, unknowing that Starfire was about to melt into a puddle at Robin's touch. Starfire pushed him away gently, trembling slightly, and touched the potion to her lips. Taking a deep breath, she drank it, coughing slightly as a yellow glow surrounded her completely, much like the way Terra's hands glowed when she was using her powers. As Starfire moved closer to Terra, Robin stepped slightly farther away, shaking slightly out of fear that it wouldn't work. Closing her eyes, Starfire glided up to the rock, placing one hand on the stone head of Terra and another on Terra's heart.

A flash of yellow light.

Starfire was thrust backwards backwards from the blast of energy, hitting the rock wall behind her with a sickening crack. Robin screamed her name, getting up from his own fall to help her. Then he heard the deafening crash of an explosion as the ground cracked underneath him.

Robin quickly jumped away as a rather large gulf manifested itself in the ground. The rock that was covering Terra begun to melt off into lava. In the frenzy, it look him a while to realize that the lava was coming towards an unconscious Starfire.

"No! Starfire!" yelled Robin, jumping over the pool molten rock and picking her up around the waist. Terra was half human, half rock when another burst of lava nearly covered Robin and Starfire, had he not jumped away just in time onto the untouched rock. The lava seeped back into the cracks in the ground, sealing it shut as Terra collapsed.

"Starfire?" said Robin, shaking her gently. "Starfire… come on… w-wake up…" Robin was so preoccupied about her that he hadn't even noticed that Terra had fallen and was trying to move. Starfire made a soft little moaning noise, and Robin almost felt lightheaded at the wave of relief that passed over him. Losing himself in the moment, being so thankful she was okay, he kissed her forehead. Then he heard a groan of pain a few yards away.

"Terra!" he exclaimed. "Starfire! Starfire, you did it!"

"What…?" asked Starfire, still confused as to why she was on the ground. She noticed she was held tightly in Robin's embrace, and that his face was very, very close to hers. She blushed.

"Terra! She's back!" said Robin, grinning wildly. "We did it! _You_ did it! Come on!" Robin helped Starfire to her feet, and seeing that she was slightly unstable, picked her up and carried her over to Terra. Starfire secretly breathed in the scent of Robin… closing her eyes and savoring the moment.

_Thank heavens, he has not noticed_… thought Starfire. "Robin, is she alright? Did I succeed?"

"Unh…" said Terra, trying to get up from the floor with little success. "I'm… alive?"

"FRIEND TERRA!" exclaimed Starfire, toppling out of Robin's grasp.

"Whoa! Starfire, hold on! You're still-"

But Starfire seemed to have regained her strength, for she had run over to a crawling Terra and tackled her with a hug.

"FRIEND TERRA! YOU HAVE RETURNED! YOU ARE ALRIGHT! OH, I HAVE SUCCEEDED!"

"Wha-" began Terra, only to be cut from air by Starfire's hug. "Succeeded…? Where am… what… I'm… alive—"

"Starfire and I traveled to Tamaran to find a cure. We almost lost Starfire but she made it," explained Robin, looking at Starfire with admiration.

"You… you brought me back…?" asked Terra, her voice barely a whisper. "Why? Why would you do that?"

"Oh, Terra, we could no longer stand the sadness of Beast Boy! We simply had to do something!" said Starfire, sitting down next to Terra.

"Beast boy… sad… sadness?" asked Terra in disbelief… _Does he still care…?_ "I—"

"Yeah…" began Robin, "I realize you've kind of lost track of time. It's been about 2 years… almost three, I'm not really sure. Anyway, Beast Boy's eighteenth birthday is tomorrow, and we wanted to bring you back to him—"

Starfire cut him off. "Raven said 'He is lost without her—'"

"And you know she's never liked you," Robin finished.

Terra was finding it very difficult to register everything. The last thing she could remember, she was watching Beast Boy run away, trying to hold on to the way it felt to hold him one last time. What he smelled like, how he made her feel. She could still remember it. It was like yesterday to her, but the memory was so alien it almost felt like it was someone elses. _Why? _Terra asked herself, _Why does he still care for me? I don't deserve for him to care about me… no matter how much I… no… no, don't think about it. _Terra felt tears building up in her eyes and looked away from Robin and Starfire to try and hide them.

"It is alright, friend Terra, you can cry…" said Starfire, sympathetically putting a hand on Terra's shoulder. She broke down.

"I don't deserve it! I don't deserve for Beast Boy to still care for me!" she cried out, sobbing into Starfire's shoulder. "I betrayed him! I left him! And he still… he still…"

"Terra, you realize that most of us know that—" said Robin.

"Know what?"

"That your sacrifice wasn't for us… it was for him…"

Terra gasped slightly. Events of Slade's destruction and her final moments played over in her mind, from the moment when she told Beast Boy 'I hope you're not expecting a good-bye kiss,' to the moment that she realized she loved him, and saving him was the only option.

"Friend Terra, you gave your life for Beast Boy," said Starfire. "For us, for the Titans… You do deserve… you both deserve to have each other once again."

Slowly, Terra nodded.

"YES! WE ARE GOING TO BRING HAPPINESS BACK TO FRIEND BEAST BOY!" exclaimed Starfire, hugging Terra again. Robin laughed, looking at Starfire lovingly. Starfire turned to meet his gaze and he turned away nervously.

"Uhm… okay," he coughed. "Um, to get this to work right, we should get to the house—"

"AT MIDNIGHT!" exclaimed Starfire.

"Huh?"

"Oh yes, Robin, it would be the perfect surprise! Is it not at midnight that one day changes into another on this planet?" asked Starfire, hatching an idea.

"Yeah… but—"

"Well, why do we not have Terra show up at the Titans Tower at midnight? Because then it would officially be the anniversary of his birth, and it will be his gift!"

Terra smiled slightly at how excited Starfire had gotten at the idea. She guiltily admitted that she wanted to see Beast Boy more than anything… even though she knew she was undeserving of such an opportunity… she felt somehow unworthy.

"That's actually a good idea…" said Robin. "Okay, here's what we're gonna do. We'll go somewhere to get you new clothing… I don't think you should show up in Slade's old uniform for you… and then we can go grab some pizza, lay low, and then ring the doorbell at midnight. Sound good?"

"Yeah, sure," said Terra, almost in awe that she would see Beast Boy again. It was all too much to register at once. Her mind was in a daze. Robin and Starfire helped her get up and together they got their plan in motion.

* * *

Beast Boy was staring at the clock apprehensively. In a few moments he would be eighteen years old, and a wide grin was coming over his face as he watched 11:58 change to 11:59.

"Dude! Only a minute of my seventeen year old life is left!" he yelled. Raven looked up from her book and rolled her eyes, while Cyborg laughed at his friends excitement. The clock hit midnight.

"WAHOO!!! I'M EIGHTEEN! I'M OFFICIALLY EIGHTEEN! I'M LEGAL!!!" yelled Beast Boy, changing into any animal he could think of in celebration. He became a bat, and began zooming over Raven's head excitedly, then became a lion and roared loudly.

"Beast Boy! Shh! Do you want to wake up Jump City?!" said Cyborg. But Beast Boy had turned into a mouse, scurrying excitedly across the room, and then turned into an eagle, flipping around in the sky.

* * *

"Oh! He is so excited about being older! He is changing into all sorts of animals!" said Starfire, her ear pressed against the door. "Come! Terra, it is time to ring the… uhm…"

"Doorbell," filled in Robin, grinning at her. She blushed.

Terra looked terrified. "Maybe this isn't a good idea…" she said quietly.

"Oh no, you are _not _backing out now," said Robin. "Do it for Beast Boy…"

"Right…" she said quietly. "For Beast Boy."

Starfire looked as if she had suddenly gotten an idea. "Robin! Come here!" she told him, standing in front of Terra. "We shall surprise him by moving away and showing Terra!" she exclaimed, wondering why Robin looked as though it was hard for him to swallow. It was then that she noticed she was holding his hand.

She let it go shyly and rang the doorbell.

* * *

Beast Boy was in the middle of a few somersaults as a monkey when the doorbell sounded. He morphed back into himself, aggravated at the thought of someone ruining his excitement.

"Way to ruin my mojo!"

"Mojo…?" asked Raven, raising an eyebrow at him.

"Never mind…"

"I'll get it," said Cyborg, walking to the door and opening it. "Hey guys! We were wondering where you were!" Cyborg looked past Starfire and Robin, flashing a smile at Terra and turning around.

"Beeeeeeeeeast Boy!" called Starfire in a sing song voice. "Cyborg, step to the side, we have a surprise for friend Beast Boy!"

"Yo! BB! Come here!" called Cyborg. Beast Boy got up from the floor and walked to the door.

"Hey, guys! What's up?"

Robin and Starfire looked at each other. "We've got something for you. A birthday present, if you will…" said Robin.

"Dude! Yes! What is it! Food? A moped? Oh man, is it a moped! Is it—"

Starfire and Robin moved apart.

"…Terra…?"


	2. Like a Lady With a Handkerchief

**A/N**: BIG thanks to all my reviewers! I'm so glad people are taking interest in this story!. I'll be updating this much quicker than my other ones, since it's so much more fun to write right now. (I already have chapter three done!) Normally it takes me 2 weeks to update, but this took me like, 2 days. I had to fix a little problem with the words sicking together, but I fixed it... I think... Anyways, without further ado, chapter two:

* * *

"…Terra…?" 

Beast Boy stood staring at the door way, blinking excessively as though willing himself not to believe what he was seeing. It all had to be some kind of cruel, taunting, and wonderfully blissful dream. Terra, the girl who had never left his mind for almost a year, was standing at the door. He suddenly felt very light-headed.

Terra stood at the entrance, wringing her hands and trying to look anywhere but straight at Beast Boy. She felt that if she looked in his eyes, she might burst into sobs of both joy and anguish, and end up flinging her arms around him in a hug. Her heart pounded in her chest. Her breathing was becoming shallow.

_Oh my God, why am I here? Why am I standing here? _she asked herself, _What was I thinking? Was I thinking that he would actually want me back? That he'd be happy that I came back? Stupid, stupid Terra!_

Beast Boy was slowly walking towards her, looking as though he was about to fall down on his knees and faint. He was barely a foot away from her when he reached out his hand to her cheek. Terra flinched, closing her eyes.

_Oh my God, he's gonna slap me. He hates me. He's gonna slap me, and I deserve it. No, no I don't, I don't even deserve that. I don't… oh God…_

Beast Boy did not slap her, and he did not scream or take any harsh action against her either.

He poked her.

Terra opened her eyes in surprise. Beast Boy was poking the side of her cheek slightly, then moving further down to poke her chin, her shoulders, her forehead, anything from the neck up. Starfire was trying not to giggle, failing miserably as Robin simultaneously shook his head in amusement.

"Am I… dreaming?" Beast Boy asked, more to himself than to the group. Half of Terra wanted to tell him, 'yes, you are! and now dream Terra has gotta go!' and run out of Titan's Tower. But the other half wanted to reach out to him and tell him that it wasn't a dream, and she really was back. The same other half that wanted to hold him, kiss him... be with him.

Beast Boy's hand had stopped poking the side of her face and moved away from Terra, coming to rest on his other hand, which he pinched. Hard.

"Ow!" he said, rubbing his hand slightly. Realization dawned on his face, and he forgot the slight pain in his hand. "Oh… oh my God…"

He looked at Terra.

Both of them were about to cry.

"Terra…?"

It took all of Terra's willpower to open her mouth and speak. She felt as if something had lodged itself in her throat and refused to budge. She wouldn't have been able to swallow no matter how hard she tried.

"Y-yeah…" was all she could muster.

"Oh my God, TERRA!" yelled Beast Boy, closing the space between Terra and himself, wrapping his arms around her and burying his face into the crook of her neck. Terra was trying to hard not to cry, but her vision just became more and more incapacitated with her withheld tears, until it came to the point where she felt as if she had opened her eyes underwater. Finally, tears became to much for eyelids to hold back and fell of their own accord.

_Please, don't let him see me cry..._

She wanted to hug him back, but her arms were limp at her sides and she couldn't have moved them in any direction if she tried. Up, down, left, right, around, in circles... It didn't matter. Her body almost felt as though she'd been once again covered in stone, feeling the familiar inability to move her arms or legs, or any other part of herself... including her soul. However, this stone shell was alot softer, warmer, and much more pleasant than the one she had once gotten herself into before. But she still couldn't move, and oh God, did she try to move as she breathed in the scent that was Beast Boy, a mixture between his own natural scent and an unfamiliar, albeit pleasant, cologne. Starfire seemed to notice Terra's inability to move, and grabbed her right hand to place it around Beast Boy. Moving around the reunited pair, Starfire took Terra's left hand and did the same thing.

"There! That is better!" she exclaimed, clapping her hands eagerly. Terra couldn't help but laugh slightly. She could move now, and nothing was going to stop her from hugging Beast Boy, not even her own guilt. So she put her arms more tightly around him and pulled him close.

Everyone expected Beast Boy to sigh or cry out with joy, or even just smile. No one could understand why Terra was all of a sudden looking as though hugging Beast Boy was causing her a great deal of trouble. And that's when the Titan's realized. She wasn't just _holding_ Beast Boy... she was holding him _up_.

"Beast Boy? Uhm…"

Beast Boy had fainted.

"You wuss! Come on, man!" said Cyborg, abandoning all thought of restraining his laughter as an act of courtesy when Beast Boy slid off a panicked Terra and hit the ground with a thud. Cyborg was beside himself with laughter.

"Robin! What is wrong with Beast Boy? He has gone all… loopy!" said Starfire, clutching onto Robin's arm. Robin gulped.

"I guess, uh, the excitement got to him…" said Robin, still very much aware that Starfire's arm was clutching his own, and she was standing very close. Somewhere inside the room, Raven let out a groan of annoyance and enveloped Beast Boy in a black aura, floating him up to his room, then making sure to give Terra a death glare on her way up. The thought of Raven being alone with Beast Boy in his room made Terra's blood boil, but she refused to show anger.

"Just give Raven some time," said Robin, putting an arm on Terra's shoulder.

"Yes, friend Raven has never been too trusting of you, but I am certain she will come around… she must," said Starfire, walking into the kitchen to get an ice bag for Beast Boy. Looking around, Terra saw that Cyborg was still laughing uncontrollably.

"BB! Fainted!" he said, words coming outbetween his sharp gasps for air.

* * *

Beast Boy woke up wrapped in the covers of his own bed, his head pounding slightly. He tried to sit up, but he felt a hand push him back down. He looked up to see Raven, Robin, and Starfire in his room. 

"Rest," Raven told him.

"Oh man… what happened?"

"You had an attack of the faintness!" said Starfire, not bothering to cover up how worried she'd been. "We do not know why, but you did, and I was so worried for you! I am so glad-"

Starfire moved forward, as though to go hug Beast Boy, but Raven grabbed her by the back of her shirt.

"The last thing he needs is a monstrously strong hug," said Raven, pulling the young Tamaranian back. Starfire blushed.

Beast Boy was suddenly looking around the room, his eyes downcast. Surely he must have dreamt it all. It was too good to be true. It was probably a dream that he'd had after fainting. But he had to make sure, so he tried to find a way to ask the Titans without having to _actually_ ask them.

"I just had the weirdest dream… Dude, I mean, I think it was a dream-" began Beast Boy, but he and the Titans forgot all about what he was going to say next as they heard pounding footsteps followed by the sound of Cyborg crashing through the door to Beast Boy's room.

"YOU FAINTED, BRO!" said Cyborg, positively howling with laughter.

Beast Boy glared at him. "Yeah, thanks, I get that…"

"No, dude! You _actually_ fainted! You know, like they did in the old days, like in the twenties, man! When the girls would do that little 'aah!' sound and then faint with the handkerchief in their hands!" said Cyborg, mimicking a fainting woman by putting the back of his hand to his forehead and falling down slightly. He started laughing again.

"What is this 'handkerchief' you speak of?" asked Starfire.

"It's a sort of miniature towel that you wipe your eyes or nose with, Star," said Robin, filling her in.

"But, Cyborg, Beast Boy did not have a… a handkerchief? Is that how it is called?"

"WOULD YOU GUYS SHUT UP ABOUT HANDKERCHIEFS?" yelled Beast Boy, his head pounding. "I'm telling you, I had the best... the weirdest... dream… after I fainted. But I don't remember fainting…"

The four other Titans looked at each other uneasily.

"Uh, what about?" asked Robin, unsure of how to go about telling him that Terra's return was not a dream.

"I dreamt that… that Terra came back… in time for my birthday… that you and Starfire surprised me with her," said Beast Boy quietly. He didn't know what to do. He felt almost certain that it hadn't been a dream, but it was just too good to be true. "I know you're sick of me talking about her-"

"BB, you weren't dreamin' you know," said Cyborg. Beast Boy looked up sharply.

"W-what?"

"That is the reason for your faint-ness!" said Starfire.

"Just 'fainting,' Star" corrected Robin.

"Right! That is the reason for your fainting-ness!" continued Starfire. Robin laughed slightly, but resolved to correct her on her error later. "You saw Terra, and then you went over and embraced her! It was so romantic!But then you had a fainting on top of her, and Raven carried you-"

"SHE'S HERE?" yelled Beast Boy, interrupting Starfire and making her jump. "YOU MEAN, SHE'S ACTUALLY HERE?"

Everyone but Raven grinned at him.

"She's in the living room," said Robin.

Not another word was spoken. Beast Boy ignored his slight headache and jumped out of his bed, uncaring that his shirt was hanging loosely on him and almost running over Starfire in the process. He would make things right with Terra, no matter what the cost.

* * *

Terra sat on the half-circle couch in the living room of Titan's Tower, nervously trying to fix her hair and clothes. She had gotten rid of the suit she was wearing when she had been cast in stone, since she, Starfire, and Robin went out to buy clothes. She wore an outfit similar to that of the one she wore when she was 'a titan,' though she deserved not to be called one in her opinion. The only difference was that the shorts were shorter and blue, and the black t-shirt didn't have the yellow "T" symbol on it. She heard a slight shuffling from somewhere behind her and turned around to look. 

"Beast Boy…"

"Terra…" he began uncertainly. "Is it really you? Not some clone or something?"

"N-no… it's really me…" she told him, giving him a look over and blushing at his half-open shirt and jeans. It seemed strange that he wasn't in his normal Titans attire, but she liked it nonetheless. Beast Boy didn't even think twice about. He ran the steps separating him from the couch and hugged her tightly.

"Please, don't faint this time," said Terra.

"Ha ha, not funny."

They pulled apart, both smiling, Terra's eyes slightly watery. _Since when did I become such a crybaby! Jeeze, Terra, get a grip!_

"You okay?" he asked her.

"Yeah! Yeah I'm fine… it's just…" she began, then trailing off. Beast Boy tilted his head slightly. "Can we go somewhere… to talk?" she asked him uncertainly, hoping to God he wouldn't say 'no! I hate you!' or something of the sort.

"Yeah, sure… wanna go to the roof?"

"Mmhm."

"'Kay, gimme a sec," he told her, getting up from the couch. "Hey! Dudes! I'm going up to the roof for a sec!" Getting no response, he looked at Terra. "Ah, whatever, they won't mind. Come on, let's go."

He held out his hand to her, and she found that it was trembling slightly. Was it possible that he was as nervous as she was? She shook off the thought. No matter. She had to make things right. She just had to. If Beast Boy hated her, she didn't know how she could live. She had been a stone all her life until the day she had met him, and she didn't want to go back to that cold prison. Not ever.


	3. Past Scars

**A/N: **Man, I love writing this story! I want to thank everyone for the huge amounts of reviews I get. I love each and every one of you!

_AlianaLawson_: I'm so glad you consider me a good writer! It bugs me when people can't write too. Netspeak gives me a major headache.

_RyokoJesseandFiend_: I'm glad you liked, and I hope you enjoy this one. You're the best writer that I've read here, so coming from you, it's a great compliment.

So, without any more delay, here's chapter three! (It's really sad, ye be warned)_

* * *

_

_Breathe in... Calm down, Terra, you can do this..._

Terra sat on the roof of Titan's Tower next to Beast Boy, unable to think of a time when she feared his rejection more, an ironic sentiment for someone whose whole life revolved around not having been accepted by anyone. Not her parents, her family, no one. Only one had ever cared, and at the moment he was tentatively gazing at her, clad in loose blue jeans and a half open shirt. She was about to tell Beast Boy her most profound secret: the reason she gave into Slade so easily, and the reason she agreed to destroy the Teen Titans. The only other person who knew about the events in the past that have since haunted her mind was her uncle, and he was the cause of it all.

"Terra, you okay?"

It was about the fourth time he'd asked her the same question. He shifted his jade green eyes away from her momentarily. Beast Boy still could hardly believe she was there, in the flesh and not stone. "How did you… get out?"

"Starfire and Robin… they traveled to that planet thing-"

"Tamaran?"

"Right, that. Well, Starfire drank some potion and melted the rock off me or something like that… she almost…" said Terra, painfully realizing that she was once again the cause for turmoil. "She almost got killed… but Robin saved her…"

"Oh…" said Beast Boy, looking at her. He was surprised that Starfire and Robin had gone through all that trouble just for Terra. Possibly for him too, he supposed… Maybe they had noticed how much he missed Terra. Without thinking, he spoke aloud. "I've missed you…"

Terra turned to look at him, and he, realizing what he'd said, turned away shyly. She watched as a light blush crawled its way up to his cheeks at the same time that one of his small fangs bit his bottom lip in apprehension.

"I've… I've missed you too…" she told him. This time, it was her turn to blush and look away. "Listen… I should explain. I mean, I know nothing that I say can make up for everything that I've d-done t-to…"

She would have continued talking, but the tears welling up in her eyes brought along an emotion that butchered her words right as they passed her lips.

"Terra…" he whispered, scooting closer to her and diffidently sliding one arm around her waist. She sat up slightly for a moment, and then relaxed, letting out an imperceptible sigh as she closed her eyes. "It's okay."

"N-no! It's not okay!" she cried, surprising Beast Boy, "I have to explain! I've betrayed you, left you… I know it's asking way too much for you to forgive me-"

"Terra, you _died_ for us! You got locked up in a chunk of rock to save us! We've forgiven you!"

"Not Raven…"

"Raven? It took Raven a year to be nice to me! That's normal!"

"I know…" she said, trembling slightly as a breeze picked up. Beast Boy, as though acting on instinct, pulled her closer to him. Chills went up her spine, traveling up her body at a speed she thought must be illegal somewhere in the world… or at least it should have been. "But I have to explain- why I gave into Slade- why I- did the things I did. I know that it's, in the end, my own fault… but…"

She turned to look at Beast Boy, the tip of her nose slightly brushing against his given that they had been sitting so close together. Terra blushed, turning away from him to look out at the ocean view and taking a deep breath, both calming and preparing herself for what she knew she had to do if she was ever to have another chance with the green skinned adolescent sitting next to her.

"My mom and dad died when I was eight, so I went to go live with my uncle… and… and everything was fine until my twelfth birthday…" she began, glancing at him uncertainly so see his reaction. "I came home with some friends, you know, so we could have a party… and he had been taking something… I don't know if it was drugs, or alcohol… I don't know… but he got really mad… and so I told my friends to get out of the house as fast as they could. He… he started yelling at me, and he had this kitchen knife in his hand and was… w-was…"

Terra felt emotion overwhelm her again, and the look on Beast Boy's face was a mixture of shock and sadness. She needed to go on. She needed to get this off her chest. Taking a low, calming breath, she continued.

"He was swinging it all over the place…" she told him, seeing it all happen again in her mind. She shut her eyes in a futile attempt to stop the flow of nightmarish scenes, but it wouldn't work. Little by little, the face of her uncle swam around in her head, menacingly holding an eight inch kitchen knife at the level of his eyes.

"I remember, I ran and hid under the bed…" she continued, eyebrows furrowed as though it caused her a great deal of pain to continue, "a-and just when I thought I was safe… I got out from under it and… and he was t-there… and I moved back as fast as I could, but he got me… he cut me… r-right across here," she said, pointing to a spot slightly above her left breast. Beast Boy blushed slightly, despite himself and the seriousness of the situation.

"A-and all I remember was everything was going b-black, and I was hearing sirens from the police cars… I g-guess one of my friends called the cops…" she whispered, tears flowing freely without a care in the world of who witnessed. Her voice was cracking with every few words, sentences punctuated by infinitesimal sobs and sniffles that were beyond her control. "A-and there was all this… b-blood coming out of m-me…"

Terra hastily brushed away tears with the back of her hand, only to find they'd been quickly replaced with new ones. The harder she tried not to cry, the worse it became. She was almost forcing herself to speak now.

"I don't remember what happened next…" she said, "Only waking up in the hospital, and the doctors told me my uncle had died of an overdose of whatever it was he'd been taking…"

Terra turned to look at Beast Boy, but he was looking off into the distance somewhere.

"I couldn't pay the hospital bill alone, so I ran away one night, and I was on my own for almost three years, and then I met Slade, and then you, and then, when I thought you had told Robin… Slade… h-he offered me control. Something I'd never had with my powers before… and I just… caved in…"

Beast Boy still hadn't made a sound.

"I'm so sorry…" she whispered, thinking she had failed. That he would hate her forever. Gently, she moved away from him and began to stand up, but Beast Boy's arm around her waist didn't let her go, and slowly pulled her back to him. She looked at him. He was staring out at Jump City, looking angrier than she'd ever seen.

_Oh God, I've really done it now… he hates me…_

Terra cried as silently as she could, but Beast Boy heard her sniffle slightly and turned his face around. His gaze softened considerably when he saw her crying, her ocean blue eyes bloodshot and slightly swollen.

"Terra…"

"This was a bad idea," she told him, wiping her face on her sleeve. "I should go, I shouldn't have bothered you… not on your birthday… n-not ever. I'm so sorry, Beast Boy…"

"No, Terra… you don't have to be sorry-"

"But I do!" she cried out, causing him to step back slightly in alarm. "How can you say that, after all I've done? How can you sit there and tell me I have nothing to be sorry for!"

"It's the truth!"

Terra fell silent.

"Terra, listen to me… what your uncle did… it's… _that_ is unforgivable. What you did? Yeah, you may have been wrong to betray us and all, but you died for us!"

"No, I didn't… not for the Titans…"

Beast Boy felt his heart plummet slightly. _Not for us? _he thought, dropping his hands from the positions in the air they had stopped at.

"For who then?" asked Beast Boy, trying not to sound hurt.

"…For you…"

Beast Boy's heart went from it's sunken position to the point where it felt like it was in his throat. He could hear it pounding in his ears as though someone was rapidly beating a drum inside his head. He gulped.

"R-really?" he asked her, meeting her gaze, looking for any reason not to believe her.

"Yeah…" Terra whispered, turning her face away from the ground to look at Beast Boy. He was already gazing at her, an unreadable expression on his face. The sun was starting to come up, and Terra felt herself instinctively incline her head slightly forward, her eyelids fluttering shut as Beast Boy did the same.

They were so close.

She could feel his warm breath on her face.

His lips brushed hers slightly…

"FRIENDS! THE MORNING'S FOOD HAS BEEN PUT UPON THE TABLE!" called Starfire, running up to the roof. Beast Boy and Terra jumped apart quickly. "Oh! I did not mean to interrupt!" said Starfire, running back down the stairs. "Please! Forgive me!"

Terra and Beast Boy looked at each other nervously.

"Uhm, well, uh, we should…" stuttered Beast Boy. "W-we should go have breakfast…"

"Yeah," replied Terra, sighing in disappointment, her lips tingling ever so slightly from the brief contact. They had been so close… Beast Boy helped Terra to her feet and walked with her down the stairs from the roof.

"Oh, and Terra?"

"Hm?"

Beast Boy grinned slightly and opened the door to the main room. He took her hand.

"Welcome back…"


	4. Artifacts

**A/N**: Gah! I updated kinda late this time! Sorry! Anyways, thanks to hermioneandterras-twin16 and kat, who reviewed!

**teentitantruefriend**: I'M ON A C2 COMMUNITY! YAY! THANK YOU!

**Azaelia Gamgee-Took**: AH! You like Lord of the Rings! YAY! And thanks, your review was really sweet!

**Shougo Amakusa**: Yo tambien soy escritora de anime, pero no veo Rurouni Kenshin. A mi me encanta la serie "Ayashi no Ceres" y me gusta el manga de esa misma series tambien. Que bueno es hablar con alquien aqui en español! Pero me imagino que los otros que leen este cuento se enojan por no poder entender lo que te estoy diciendo. Hehe. De donde eres?

Anyways, on to the story! This chapter is kinda bittersweet, and nothing really happens but it's a set up for what's gonna happen in the next chapter, which is quite, uh, eventful... AH! Shut up, self!

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For some reason, Terra felt more nervous walking back into Titan's Tower the second time than she had been at first. She felt as though she was coming into a new and unfamiliar area, awed at her surroundings and looking around like a tourist would while on vacation. But at the same time, the unusual feeling that she was home settled into her stomach, warming her heart and making her happier than she had been in a long time. She walked along side Beast Boy, aware that their fingers were still laced together, but she didn't say anything. If she said something, he might let go. She assumed he hadn't noticed, but the fact of the matter was that he had, and he didn't want to let go either. Terra walked past the kitchen and watched as Cyborg messed around with the television, laughing every now and then.

"Yo! B!" called Cyborg, making Beast Boy hit his head against the top of the fridge that he'd been searching for something tofu-esque to fill his grumbling stomach.

"Unh…" said Beast Boy, rubbing the back of his head. "What?"

"I got it, man!" said Cyborg, standing up and grinning mischievously, "It's a limited edition only…"

"Dude… you didn't…" said Beast Boy, looking away from the fridge, his eyes wide.

"I did…"

"You didn't!" said Beast Boy, shutting the fridge sharply and running over to Cyborg. He paused, and stared at the screen in disbelief. "MEGA MONKEYS FIVE?"

"YEAH!"

"DUDE! YES!"

Terra rolled her eyes and laughed slightly as Beast Boy and Cyborg each grabbed a game controller and started to play. Looking over at the couch, she saw Starfire and Robin sitting down, facing each other. Starfire had her back to Terra, and Terra watched as Robin stayed completely still while Starfire seemed to move her right elbow up and down in every direction possible. Robin's smirk grew wider.

"Star, you're not gonna beat me at thumb wrestling, you know," said Robin, swiftly covering her thumb with his, pinning it down. Terra walked slightly to the left to get a better look. Starfire seemed to be struggling to pull her thumb out of captivity, her expression growing more frustrated. Robin started to laugh, until he saw the grin on Starfire's face, followed by a small flash of green energy issued from the top of her thumb that broke Robin's grip.

"Hey! No fair, Starfire!" cried Robin, indignant. "No powers!"

"Oh, I am sorry, Robin," said Starfire, smiling at him with feigned innocence. "I did not know of the rules…"

"Yes you did!" said Robin, but Starfire wasn't listening. She had started to walk around the couch humming softly to herself, her fingers in her ears. Robin stared at her in mock-annoyance, seemingly unable to contain the grin that was threatening to ruin his glare. "Oh, you're so dead, Star…" he whispered to himself, and she, having her fingers in her ears and her eyes closed, did not hear nor see him rise from the couch.

"Lalalala! I am not listening!" she said, but fell silent at the sight of his absence. "Robin?"

Starfire looked around uncertainly, biting the tip of one of her fingers in confusion before she let out a loud shriek. The second she had turned around, Robin had lifted her onto his shoulder, carrying her around the room. To everyone else but the boy wonder, it was obvious she was enjoying herself. Squeals of panic soon turned into flirtatious ones of delight, as she lightly banged her small fists against Robin's back.

"Release me, Robin! I do not wish to have to fight you!"

"Oh, is that a challenge?" asked Robin, smirking in doubt.

"It is! I challenge you! Release me!" she said. Terra watched, amused at the thought that she knew Starfire could fly, and had she really wanted to be put down she would have flown away. But she noticed the blush that had crawled up to Starfire's cheeks. Terra suddenly had an idea as she watched them walk in front of the couch. Careful to not lose control, her brow furrowed in concentration, she saw a small rock in one of the flower pots of the room and floated it over to Robin's feet. In an instant, he and Starfire came crashing down on the couch. Starfire's laughter turned into a small squeak of fright as Robin landed sprawled on top of her on the couch, both of them blushing furiously. Terra had to clamp her hand over her mouth to stop herself from laughing out loud.

But somewhere in a far corner, she heard someone mutter indistinct words of annoyance, and Terra looked up to see Raven sitting on a chair with a large black book propped up on her knees, scowling at her. The smile on Terra's face was wiped off almost as quickly as it had come, and she turned around in embarassment.

_She really hates me… _thought Terra, her fists clenching slightly at her sides. She decided not to think about it, however. This was a time to celebrate. She was finally home, and Raven wasn't going to make her feel bad about herself. She did that enough on herown.Someday she and Raven would get along… It may take a while, but for now, everything was at peace, and that thought caused a small smile to tug at the corners of Terra's lips.

Turning around again and leaning against the kitchen counter,Terra saw that Robin and Starfire hadn't moved from the position they fell into in the slightest. But neither of them was saying anything. No one was laughing, no one was squealing, nothing. In fact, the only noises now coming from within the room were those of Cyborg and Beast Boy, throwing banana boomerangs at each other in the game. But Robin and Starfire seemed to be in their own little world, a world in which it was evidently illegal to desist from looking deeply into the other's eyes. Shyly, Starfire's hand reached up to rest on the corner of Robin's mask, as though silently asking if it was okay to remove it. Since Robin had no reaction, Starfire assumed she was granted permission, but when she slipped one finger under it, ready to remove it, he gasped slightly at the sudden unfamiliar contact and lifted himself from the couch, backing away from her and adjusting his mask. Robin's expression became neutral, an almost petrified look on his face, and he awkwardly looked around the room beforeturning around and walking away. Starfire frowned, eyes downcast and saddened as she watched him disappear into his room.

_Has anyone ever seen his eyes? _Terra asked herself.

"YES! I SO-O-O WIN!" yelled Beast Boy, getting up from his position on the floor and punching the air in triumph.

"You so cheated!"

"I did not!" yelled Beast Boy, ceasing his victory dance and turning angrily on Cyborg.

"You did too!" said Cyborg, unplugging the system and standing up to tower over the green changeling. Beast Boy looked intimidated for a split second, and then smirked right before turning into a ten foot grizzly bear. Just as Cyborg unveiled his cannon and pointed it at Beast Boy, a black aura surrounded them both, lifting them into the air as Beast Boy changed back into his human self.

"I'm trying to read…" said Raven through gritted teeth, her black book discarded on the floor as she made them turn over in circles in mid air. Both boys began to yell, trying their futile attempts to move of their own accord.

"Put me down!" yelled Beast Boy, turning a weird yellow-color and clutching his stomach. Raven grinned.

"Sure, whatever you say," she said, before the mass of black disappeared and Beast Boy and Cyborg came crashing down on the floor with a loud thud.

"Ow! Cyborg, get off me!" cried Beast Boy, pinned down under a large metallic torso. Their bickering was interrupted, however, when the alarm signaling trouble in the city went off unexpectedly. Terra nearly jumped out of her skin. Somewhere within the tower, a loud crash was heard, followed by the sound of someone coming to a skidding halt in the living room. Robin's cape was half off and his hair was askew as he called out to his team.

"Titans, go!"

Immediately, Cyborg raised himself from the floor extending a hand to help Beast Boy up. Raven put her book down and Terra watched Starfire and Robin exchange an awkward glance before she flew out the door swiftly. Terra supposed she was to go with them, so she headed for the door, but a hand extended itself in-front of her, holding her back as she came face to face with Raven. The violet eyed girl stood defiantly in front of an obviously intimidated Terra and waited until Robin, Cyborg and Beast Boy had headed downstairs.

"_Titans_, go…" said Raven, walking out the door and shutting it sharply behind her. Terra stared blankly at the door, unmoving as she felt reality give her a slap in the face. She was once a titan, but no more. She heard the sounds of the T-car revving up downstairs, the cry of an eagle as Beast Boy changed to take flight, and she stayed still until noise disappeared into the distance. It took all her willpower to push back the tears that wanted to fall as she sat down on the couch, hugging her legs to her chest.

_It's for the best_, she thought, rising from the couch to walk around the tower. _I'd probably mess everything up anyways…_

It was the first time in a while that no tears fell. Terra walked aimlessly through the tower, stopping at the door of the room that was once hers. She wondered briefly what they had done with it since she had betrayed them, and as curiosity got the best of her, she opened it.

She gasped.

Absolutely nothing had changed…

Her bed was there where it had been before, the same earthly theme pertaining to the walls and sheets and floor. Looking around in awe, she sat down on the still springy bed, lying down and closing her eyes, taking a deep breath. It was when she pressed her face to the pillow that she breathed in an all too familiar and inviting scent. A peculiar original smell mingled with soft cologne.

_Beast Boy…_

Looking at her bedside table, she saw the butterfly hair pin and silver heart box side by side. She sat up with a small intake of breath, touching each relic gently as though afraid they weren't really there and would disappear at any moment.

It was not the first time she cried.

But it was the first time they were tears of joy.

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**A/N 2**: Reviews, please. I write for feedback. 


	5. Falling

**A/N: **Come on, guys! All I ask is: if you read, review! A sentence will do. Just if you liked it, and if you didn't then tell me how to improve! I'm not gonna say I'm writing only for myself, cause it's just not true. I write because I love to, and I do write for myself, but I write for you guys too, and to get feedback to improve. If you think it's great, tell me so I can know I'm doing _something_ right. Anyways, I want to thank **Forlorn Melody** for her wonderful review. I thank you for your compliments. They made my day. **RyokoJesseandFiend** are you alive? You haven't read or reviewedin a long time... **Shougo Amakusa** siempre es bueno hablar contigo por el MSN Messenger. Perdona si algunas veces no respondo, es que yo siempre me voy de la computadora sin decir nada. And **Amakai** I'm really glad you decided to review.

On with the show!

* * *

"Step on it, Cyborg!" yelled Robin, eyes widening in horror as he saw the state of downtown Jump City. Buildings were half eroded, acid eating away holes on the sidewalk down to the sewers. People were running away, fearing for their lives as loud, monstrous, deep-throated cries erupted from the mountain of purple sludge that was now only yards away from the T-Car. 

Plasmus.

Robin, Cyborg, and Raven stepped out of the car as Starfire and Beast Boy landed next to them and both flyers simultaneously looked up at the mass of reddish-purple causing the wreckage below. Plasmus was on a rampage, and there was no doubt in anyone's mind that Slade would be lurking somewhere nearby. Just the mere thought of Slade made Robin's blood boil, the heightened desire to find his enemy and bring him down consuming him more than ever. Jump City had never been in such a state, and Slade was _not_ going to get away with this.

"My God…" whispered Robin, teeth gritted and fists clenched, trying to formulate a plan of attack in his mind. "Okay, I think I have an idea. Starfire?"

"Yes Robin?" asked Starfire, both she and Robin jumping apart and out of the way as a jet of acid flew over their heads. She let out a scream. Robin, who had moved away as well, called out to her from a few feet away, needing to raise his voice so they would hear him over the tumult.

"You and I will fly up to one of the buildings. Raven and Cyborg, go around to the back and corner him there." Robin told them, pointing to a small building next to a larger one that the acid had corroded almost entirely.

"Gotcha," said Cyborg.

"Okay, Beast Boy and Terra, you'll-" began Robin, but both he and Beast Boy were looking around. "Where's Terra?"

Raven looked away from the group, her expression conventionally neutral. She saw a solid block of concrete head her way and enveloped it in her black aura, pushing it to the side. Immediately, Beast Boy looked straight at his violet cloaked teammate, accusing her with his stare, jade eyes blazing in anger.

"Did you stop her from coming?" he asked, his voice unnaturally calm and his fangs bared.

"Robin said '_titans_, go,'" said Raven, turning to face Beast Boy, each one defiantly staring the other down. "Last time I checked, Terra wasn't a Titan."

Beast Boy looked as though he wanted to turn into a Tyrannosaurus and swallow her whole.

"Hey, don't look at me. Terra doesn't have control over her powers anymore," said Raven, floating a few feet off the ground and grabbing Cyborg by his shoulders, lifting him up into the air. Turning to take a look at Beast Boy, she spoke again: "She could've killed us all…"

Beast Boy didn't say anything. He turned around, not even flinching as an explosion of acid went off somewhere behind him. Starfire looked at him with a mixture of sympathy and fear.

"Beast Boy, you shalljourney with us to the building-"

"No, it's okay," he told them, "We need to keep Plasmus surrounded on all sides. I'll stay here."

Robin and Starfire nodded at him in agreement as she lifted them both up into the air.

"Just make sure Plasmus doesn't go any further uptown!" called Robin, shrinking away into the distance as Beast Boy transformed into the T-rex, almost wishing Raven was there. He looked up to see Starfire launching Robin onto another building, firing star bolts as she let him go. Robin seemed to be having a lot of trouble doing any damage. Somewhere south, Raven lifted a bus with her power.

"Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos!" she screamed, launching the bus into Plasmus, only to watch helplessly as she saw it sink into him. Unfortunately for her, she wasn't expecting Plasmus to spit it back out. Raven screamed, her strong sudden fear setting off an explosion somewhere to the left of her as the colossal bus came racing down back towards her. Thinking quickly, Beast Boy charged towards Raven and, becoming himself again, tackled her out of the way.

"Thanks," she began, but fell silent at the look her friend was giving her. Beast Boy said nothing, but rose from the ground in the form of a vulture, preparing to peck at Plasmus' eyes. Somewhere in the near distance, Robin smacked down one of the monster's hands with his staff, only to watch his weapon be sucked into the mass of slime. As Robin made a desperate move to grab it, a large gurgling sound issued from the villain's hand, ejecting the staff and hitting Robin over the head. Dazed, the teenager collided into a very solid figure.

"Miss me?"

Robin looked up, almost panicked.

_Slade…_

Though the villain had no real mouth, Robin could tell that he would be grinning if he had one. Glaring, Robin jumped into a fighting position, recovering his staff and pointing it menacingly at Slade.

"No," said Robin, smirking slightly and twirling the staff ominously. Moving swiftly, Robin jumped forward and swung the weapon at Slade's head, but a felon of his experience wouldn't fall for an old trick like that one. Dodging the impending blow, Slade jumped to the side, swiftly sneaking around behind Robin and, with both fists together, brought down a clout to the young man's back, causing him to fall to the ground. Reacting quickly, Robin kicked sideways, bringing Slade down to his knees as he stood up.

For a while, it seemed Robin would finally win. He delivered hit after hit, seemingly draining Slade of energy as a triumphant smile tugged at the corners of his mouth. His concentration was shattered, however, when he heard Starfire scream. Robin turned around in panic to find her, watching as she dodged acid faster than his eyes could follow. Briefly, he could see that some of the corrosive substance had caught her arm.

"Starfire!" yelled Robin, forgetting about the previous fight with Slade.

Big mistake.

Rolling over on the ground, Slade whipped his hand in Robin's direction as though he had thrown something, but distracted Boy Wonder could see nothing. When Robin turned around, he saw a small brown pebble floating in front of him and thought nothing of it… That is, until the infinitesimal rock blew up in his face. A miniature bomb.

Robin managed to get out of the fire in time, but had not calculated how close to the edge of the building he was. He felt his heels and feet go over the edge as he made a wild grab for the side of the building, catching it with the tips of his fingers and holding on for dear life. He would have pulled himself up, had Slade not stepped on his fingers. Robin cried out in pain, unthinkingly letting go of the ledge and plummeted towards the ground.

"ROBIN, NO!" yelled Starfire, discontinuing her star bolts and flying down to catch him. Taking it as a perfect opportunity, Plasmus sprayed a fountain of poisonous acid straight at the falling man, hoping to catch both him and his Tamaranian princess in the crossfire. Beast Boy panicked.

He forgot all about his future assault on Plasmus' eyes. Morphing into a pterodactyl, he resolved to push them both out of the way before the spray of acid hit them. But a pterodactyl would kill them both on impact.

An inch away from Starfire, who had just caught Robin in her arms, he changed back into himself, knocking them both sideways without harming them and thinking he had succeeded in saving their lives. Well, that much he had done, but for the split second he was suspended in the air, Beast Boy had no time nor means to prevent what happened next.

A burning pain seared across his green skin, consuming him entirely as his mind went blank, incapacitated. The spray of acid that was meant for Starfire and Robin covered his entire body, sinking down to the bone marrow and opening wounds that would not soon heal. Inside he was screaming, but outwardly, he could make no audible sound. Acid sinking into fresh cuts, he closed his eyes out of instinct, barely having time to be thankful that the foul corrosive liquid hadn't gotten into them.

_Oh God… I can't… breathe…_

Beast Boy was not aware of the fact that he was hurtling towards the concrete sidewalk from fifty feet in the air at a frightening speed. He wasn't aware of anything but the pain, that all-consuming pain that made him feel as though death would have been a privilege beyond his imagination.

_Please… let me die… let this end…_

He couldn't have remembered his own name even if he'd wanted to.

_Anything… anything but this… make it stop…_

His mind couldn't process information. He couldn't think of anything. He couldn't speak, scream, yell for help… nothing. Somewhere in the distance, he heard a girl let out a scream right before a gargantuan explosion went off, but he couldn't tell where it happened or who had caused it. And the pain wouldn't let him care.

… _I'm… dying…_

He didn't even bother to brace himself for the impact. He couldn't remember anything... the Titans,who he was...nothing. He barely realized that his death was ominous. He did have one thought, though, right before he hit the ground.

_Terra…goodbye…_


	6. No More Lies

**IMPORTANT!**

**A/N**: Whoa, okay. This chapter is REALLY REALLY long, considering the normal length of my usual ones. I mean it. But there's alot that happens and a very nice, very touching BeastBoy/Terra moment in this one. This chapter took me a very long time to write actually, but I guess you can see that from my lack of update. Anyways, one of the reasons I made this one so long is because I'm leaving for an audition in NYC tomorrow and I won't be able to post for a week and a half, but I will have my laptop with me, so I will be writing, don't worry. Other than that, this chapter was challenging in terms of getting the emotions right. That is, giving it a sense of melancholy, not melodrama. I hope you all enjoy it, as it took me so long to polish up. Please, review. I work very hard for this story andI still only got 5 for the last chapter.

* * *

Beast Boy felt his body waking up as he stepped out of the darkness of his dream, his eyelids still too heavy to lift. He felt as though he had been hit by a bus, every single part of him aching immensely. Somewhere near him he was certain he was hearing soft whispers and almost silent words, washing over him with worried tones. Despite his pain, he felt oddly comfortable. 

…_Where am I?_

His exhausted body seemed to be deciding between falling back into its previous sleep and pushing itself up again. Beast Boy let out an involuntary groan as his headache gave a particularly nasty throb. His eyes found the strength to open when he heard a soft gasp to his right.

The first thing he saw was her. His head pounded and his vision was blurred as he looked at her, giving her the appearance of an angel. But she always looked like an angel. Even now, with tears in her sapphire eyes, pink replacing the white, and nail marks on her face where she must have been clutching in fear, Terra looked like an angel. If someone had told him he had died and gone to heaven he would have believed it without a second thought. Looking at her softly, he pulled his strength together into a smile. Her bottom lip quivered slightly before she rushed over to the bed and threw herself on him, burying her face into his chest and clutching at his clothing, crying profusely but without sound. At first he was startled, but he relaxed into it. Looking around, he saw that the rest of the Titans were in the room.

"Beast Boy!" cried Starfire, "You have awakened!"

"W-what happened to me…?" asked Beast Boy, looking around the room warily. Raven stood up from the chair in the corner she had been sitting in, walking over to the bed. Terra was still holding on to Beast Boy as though fearing that he would disappear if he let go.

"Acid…" said Raven, "Pure acid covered you when you saved Starfire and Robin."

"Oh, Beast Boy! We did not know if you would live!" said Starfire, her green eyes glazing over as though she were about to cry. "You had pushed Robin and I away from the spray of the acid, and then it covered all of you!"

Beast Boy pulled the covers up and looked down at himself, seeing why he was aching so badly when he had woken up. His torso, arms and legs were all heavily bandaged, the white cloth slightly tinged with mixed hues of green, yellow and purple.

"You must've fallen about two hundred feet," said Robin, giving an involuntary shudder as he played the incident back in his mind. "When you hit the ground…"

"W-we did not know if you h-had," said Starfire, tears flowing freely as she let out a small cry of anguish and relief and rushed over to the bed to hug her green friend. Raven, however, grabbed her once again by the back of her uniform.

"Starfire, he's hurt. A hug from you wouldn't help him now," said Raven. Starfire looked momentarily fazed and stepped back slightly.

"But friend Terra is hugging him!" she cried, offended as though someone had told her that she wasn't worthy enough to hug Beast Boy.

"Uh, Star?" said Cyborg, glancing at Beast Boy who had just shyly placed a kiss to Terra's forehead. "That's, uh… different…"

Starfire still looked confused.

"I'll explain later…" whispered Robin in her ear, grinning slightly at her naïveté.

"And Plasmus?" asked Beast Boy, gently stroking Terra's hair with one of his bandaged hands. "I heard an explosion right before—"

"That was me," interrupted Raven, folding her arms over her chest. "I lost control. I saw you about to hit the ground and the lack of control set off an explosion… right under Plasmus…"

Beast Boy paused. When Raven lost complete control, the explosions that went off were able enough to kill anything in their path. The Titans had never, in their whole career of fighting crime, killed any villain, no matter how evil. Beast Boy gulped, ready to ask Raven if Plasmus was dead… but as a mind-reader, she was one step ahead of him.

"Blew him to pieces," she said quietly, her usually apathetic face mirroring guilt. Beast Boy's heart skipped a beat. To them, murder was below their integrity and had never yet needed to resort to it, and they always took the villain into a prison, locking him away… But they had never killed.

"Raven…" whispered Beast Boy, "I'm sorry…"

"It's not your fault," she told him simply. She might have been fighting it off, but he knew she was feeling at fault for the whole ordeal. "I'm gonna go read up on some things…" she told them, walking out of the room.

"Poor Raven…" said Robin, watching his go off into the distance. Hearing Terra sniffle gently, he looked back at her and Beast Boy. She was still lying on the bed, her head on Beast Boy's shoulder. Robin could tell that she and Beast Boy needed some time alone, so he caught Cyborg's eye and pointed silently at the pair and then to the door. Grinning slightly, the half-machine nodded and nudged Starfire out of the room.

"We are departing?" she asked. Robin pressed a finger to her lips and pointed once again at Terra and Beast Boy. Starfire still looked slightly confused, but let Robin lead her out of the room regardless.

The green changeling was silently thanking his leader.

"Hey…" he whispered, "You okay?"

For some reason, it seemed Terra couldn't control her crying. She didn't know what was wrong with her. Something inside her seemed to have tensed up tightly when she had seen Raven and Starfire carrying Beast Boy back into the tower, bleeding profusely and seemingly dead. And after her initial state of numb disbelief, it was as though a dam that had been holding back emotion caved in suddenly when she saw that he was alive. And it just kept flowing out in the form of tears; soaking the bandages…She could do nothing but nod into his shoulder.

_I'm such a crybaby!_ she thought to herself, _Why can't I stop crying! He's alive! I should be happy! Smile for once!_

Willing herself to look at him, she lifted her face slightly and met his eyes with all intention to smile at him and reassure him that everything was okay. But the moment she saw his eyes gazing at her intently and flooded with concern, tears clouded her vision and she whimpered slightly, hiding her face in his shoulder once again.

"Hey, Terra…" he said, becoming increasingly worried as she continued to cry. "What's wrong?"

"N-nothing!" she managed to choke out, speaking a little more loudly than she had intended. Her hands were clutching at the bed sheets as though it would stop the flow of tears that refused to cease.

"Terra," said Beast Boy, his tone slightly bitter as he looked away from her. "Please… Don't lie to me anymore…"

Terra gasped slightly.

_Oh God… he's right. I finally have a chance to make things right and here I am, lying to him again…_

"I…" she began, detaching herself from his shoulder and sitting on the edge of the bed, turning away from him so he wouldn't be able to see her face all red and swollen. "I can't stop crying!"

"I can tell, Captain Obvious," he told her with a chuckle. But his joke dissolved quickly into the palpable sorrow which she exuded. He couldn't see her face, but her shoulders were shaking slightly as she silently cried, wiping tears away furiously with her hands in a futile attempt to look presentable. "But why?" he asked her, his previous grin fading into nothing.

"I don't know!" she yelled out, bringing her fist down on the mattress. "I don't know what's wrong with me! Ever since I came back all I do is cry!"

Beast Boy stared at her, bewildered. Gently, he reached his hand out to put it on her shoulder, sitting up further on the bed and a sharp intake of breath issued from his mouth as he changed his position around, a simple act that caused him intense pain.

_Suck it up, Logan. Don't let her see you in pain…_

"I cried when Starfire and Robin brought me back, I cried when I told you about m-my… my uncle…" she told him, her stomach fluttering slightly as she felt his arms wrap around her from behind, almost shyly. She relaxed into his embrace, finding the willpower to continue. "I cried when I saw _you_… I cried when I went in my room and saw the box you made me—"

"What?" he asked her, tensing up slightly. He let her go as she turned around, his face completely panic stricken. "Y-you saw the box?"

For once, Terra smiled. He was obviously embarrassed about having kept it, along with her hair pin.

"Yeah…" she told him. Her smile vanished, however, when she saw a small bit of dried blood on his forehead. Suddenly, she was tearing up again. "A-and I'm crying n-now!"

Beast Boy forgot all about his previous embarrassment and put a finger under her chin, lifting it so her eyes would be level with his.

"But why?" he asked her.

"I don't know…I guess it's just…when I saw you…and Raven and Starfire had brought you in…" she began, moving her face away from his hand and looking at the opposite wall. "You were all covered in…and I didn't know…I thought you had… had…"

She tried to continue, she really did.

"We plugged you into t-the heart monitor, a-and…"

She was doing her best not to cry.

"There was no…no heart beat… and we thought… I thought…"

Her breathing was slightly ragged as she forced the words out.

"If you had…I don't know what I'd…without you…"

All she managed to do was put her face in her hands as she thought about losing him. When she had seen him, un-breathing and covered in a foul green liquid that mingled oddly with the blood, she had really thought he was gone. Living without him, even just for that moment, was a nightmare.

"Terra," said Beast Boy, cupping her cheek with his hand softly. "It's okay… I'm okay! Hey, you think a little acid can take _me_ down?" he told her, grinning mischievously and flexing his muscles in a hero's pose, immediately regretting it as he stretched one of his wounds. "Ow!"

Terra couldn't help but laugh slightly. "You okay there, Superman?"

"You kidding me? Superman ain't got nothing on me!" he said in mock bravery. "See! No pain! OUCH!"

Terra giggled, gently putting a hand on his shoulder and pushing him down slightly. Unluckily, (or luckily, depending on how it is perceived,) Beast Boy lost his balance and grabbed her around the waist to stop himself from falling, succeeding only in bringing her down with him…and on him.

Terra found half of herself lying on top of an injured Beast Boy, their faces about a centimeter apart. She could feel his breath on her lips, the same as she had back on the roof. She was looking into his eyes, their gaze held tightly by an unknown force that made her feel as though looking away was physically impossible… but in either case, she didn't want to. She wondered briefly if this was how Starfire and Robin felt when they had fallen into the same position only hours before as she lost herself in that same little world where it was illegal not to search the other's eyes for whatever it was they needed… or whatever they could find. Whether it was love, infatuation, lust, friendship, or none or all of the above that she was looking for, she didn't know. Whatever it was, she found something. It was as though his eyes had silently asked for and granted permission as she allowed hers to flutter closed, moving in closer as his head slanted slightly to the right, leaning upwards to meet her.

"Yo, B! I made you some tofu waffles if you can—"

Cyborg had entered the room bearing a plateful of tofu waffles and strawberry jam for Beast Boy, but he stopped short at the sight that met him. Terra was lying on Beast Boy, his right hand was on the small of her back and the left one on the back of her head, playing with her hair, and their lips were a fraction of a hair apart.

"Whoa! Okay! I'm gonna leave you two loooovebirds alone!" he said, hastily putting the waffles on the nearby table and rushing out of the room, a grin on his face. Before he left, he turned around. "Be sure to use protection!"

Beast Boy grabbed a book that was lying on the bedside table and chucked it at the door.

Terra could hear Cyborg laughing hysterically as he walked down the hall.

"Well, uhm…" said Terra, standing up and walking to the door. "I, uh, gotta go fix some things in my room, and uh—"

She said nothing more. Her face felt as though it would burst into flame at any moment. Speechless and trembling, she walked out the door.

Beast Boy rubbed the back of his neck with his hand.

"Dammit! I'm gonna kill that computerized freak!" snarled Beast Boy. "His waffle-making days are _so_—"

His personal threats to Cyborg, however, were cut off along with the sound of his voice as he clutched his stomach in pain, his words transforming into a hacking cough which seemed to rip at the inside of his throat. He could feel the strength draining out of him as he began to see colored spots in front of his eyes, areas of the room which he could once plainly look at going black.

It was Raven who sensed the rapid beeping of the heart rate machine.

"Beast Boy!"


	7. Poisoned

**A/N:** Wow! It's been a long ass time since I updated! SO. SORRY. But school-work has been mounting and the school musical is two weeks away. In lamens terms, I'm swamped. I actually consider myself lucky to have found time to write this at all. Now, some of you may have the idea playing in your heads that I'm developing a Terra/Beast Boy/Raven love triangle, due to the events in the last chapter. THIS IS NOT TRUE! Raven is just really worried about Beast Boy, and you're about to see why, but in all honesty, I'm not going to write in a situation that I can't write myself out of without making someone in the story come off badly, or get hurt. Sorry, it's just the way it goes. P.S: has anyone noticed that these 7 chapters all take place within the timeframe of two days? The titans haven't gotten much sleep, have they?

Enjoy!

* * *

Footsteps pounded the hallways of the Titans tower, increasing in speed as the sound of the heart-rate machine became more frantic. Terra saw the team hurtling down the corridor towards her, and she moved out of the way only just in time, watching as Robin and Raven burst through the door to Beast Boy's room. Panicked, she followed them.

"Beast Boy!" cried Starfire, watching in horror as her friend leaned over the side of his bed, a spew of green and red hitting the floor next to it with an unpleasant slop. Terra and Robin gasped as Starfire let out a shriek of fright.

"Cyborg, go get a bucket or something!" said Robin, beginning to run over to Beast Boy but jumping back as another spray of vomit hit the ground. His eyes widened in shock as the ground began to sizzle, a hole burning itself into the ground. "Raven, do you have any potions for this?"

"I gotta check," said Raven, "I probably do, but I don't know which one to give him," she said, eyes widening slightly when Beast Boy let out an almighty retch, a trickle of blood coming out of the corner of his mouth. His eyes were shut tightly, sweat forming on his forehead as he gritted his teeth and clutched his stomach. Suddenly, his eyes flew wide open and he let out a small cough before they rolled into the back of his head and he fell over the side of the bed, passed out.

"Beast Boy!" yelled Robin, running over to his fallen friend, his foot stepping in the pool of green and red. Immediately, his shoe began to hiss, the acidic substance corroding the sole of his boot. "Raven, float him over!" he yelled, wrenching his foot from the ground.

"Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos," said Raven quietly, lifting her hands above her head as she gently raised Beast Boy's unconscious form off the floor and over their heads.

"Take him to his room," Robin told her as Raven drifted Beast Boy out the door. "Cyborg, get me a Petri dish and a spoon."

"Sure, man," said Cyborg, walking out the door. On his way, he looked at Terra. She was leaning against the wall, her face petrified as she gazed at the opposite wall. "Y'alright?"

It took her a good six seconds to make any sign that she had heard him.

"We'll find out what's up, don't worry," he told her, putting a hand on her shoulder. "Go see him, a'ight?"

It only took her two seconds to nod this time. Terra took in a deep breath, walking out of the room and watching as Robin examined the substances on the floor. She didn't quite remember where Raven's room was, so it took her a few tries of opening doors until she found the right one. Peeking inside, she saw Raven sitting at Beast Boy's bedside, a large book on her knees as she frantically flipped through the pages, gritting her teeth in frustration.

"I can't find anything," she stated, her tone slightly frustrated. "I should have a book with something, but I don't know what he has."

"C-can I help?" Terra asked timidly. Raven looked at her, her expression unreadable as a battle between her many personas went on deep inside her mind.

* * *

A yellow intelligence was sitting on a rock, a book in her right hand while the left toyed lazily with the water rippling beside her, trying to remain placid as Anger yelled at her. 

"Of course she can't help!" cried Anger, eyes blazing furiously as she retorted at Intelligence's witty remarks. "She ruins everything!"

"You cannot expect to believe that we can save Beast Boy on our own," Intelligence said calmly. Pride seemed to take offense to that one.

"Of course we can!"

"No, we can't," sniffed Sadness, her grayish blue cloak rippling near the water. "Beast Boy needs our help, and we need Terra's."

"You're all so stupid!" cried Anger, cheeks flushed as she rounded on Happy, who had started to giggle. "Terra's betrayed us all more than once! And you're gonna let her in again?"

"Oh, come now, Anger!" said Happy, grinning as she twirled her pink cloak. "Terra will help!"

"No, she won't!" yelled Raven's red guise.

"Well," began Intelligence, closing her book. "We're not gonna solve anything by yelling at each other. There's gotta some way to—"

But Intelligence had fallen silent as she watched Fear hide behind a rock. Somewhere in the dark corners of Raven's mind, a black cloak rippled in the wind as four red eyes glowed in the distance, smirking menacingly and knowing they would listen.

"We'll let her help, but if she messes up again, it's all over for Terra…"

* * *

"Fine," said Raven, stepping out of her reverie. "The medical book's are in that corner." Raven pointed somewhere to the left in the dark room, eyeing the blonde girl warily as she made to search them. "I don't know what we're looking for yet, but anything that catches your eye, bring it over." 

Terra nodded, dashing over to the dusty volumes. She searched the books, finding it difficult to see something that could help, as many of them were title-less. She opened a volume that had an unknown inscription on it, immediately regretting what she'd done. The second the pages had been pulled apart, the book trembled viciously and let out an ear-shattering scream, reverberating through the room and making Raven's cloak flash colors as her lamp exploded.

"Terra!" she yelled, fuming.

"I-I'm s-sorry!"

Raven's gaze softened as Terra bent down and shut the screaming book, her hands trembling. "It's okay. Just… try to be more careful of what you open."

The two heroines heard footsteps outside the room before Robin and Starfire came crashing in.

"That's right, my room is free for all to come into," Raven said sarcastically.

Starfire and Robin exchanged a confused glance before he raised a masked eyebrow at her. "Uhm, we just came in—"

"Smashed in, is more like it," said Raven, glancing at her door.

"Right…" said Robin, rubbing the back of his neck. "We just came in to tell you guys that Cyborg and I figured out what's wrong."

Raven sighed in relief as Terra dropped a handful of books to the ground. The cloaked titan glared at her, silently ordering her to pick them up. Intimidated, Terra recovered the dusty volumes and set them on a table, hoping against hope that none of them would scream this time. Cyborg strode into the room holding some papers that he had freshly printed from his analyzer and sat on the edge of Raven's bed.

"I hope you enjoy your stay at Hotel Raven," she snarled. Cyborg momentarily looked confused, and then realization dawned on him as he stood up from the bed and walked over to the door, making sure to not be stepping inside.

"He's poisoned," said Cyborg.

"What!" said Terra. Raven seemed to have come to the conclusion on her own.

"Apparently, when he got covered in acid yesterday, he swallowed some of it in shock…" began Robin, "I guess the substance was dormant, since it didn't affect him until just now… But that's why he's been throwing up. It's eating away at him from the inside out."

"What catalyzed it?" asked Raven. "You said it was dormant—"

"That much, we still don't know," said Cyborg, taking the papers out of Robin's hand and glancing at them. "It's a damn powerful acid, ya know, so it coulda been anything, really. Stress, anger, a momentary surge of hormones…" he finished, purposefully glancing at Terra, but seeing the panicked and guilty look on her face, he regretted his half-assed attempt at a joke. "W-well, I'm sure it wasn't the hormones thing… My computer shows it shoulda been something like anger or stress."

"Do we have a cure?" Raven asked simply.

"That depends on you," said Robin. "The acid is a condensed form of lactic acid, the acid released by the mitochondria in cells. Normally, lactic acid is a good thing, since it's necessary for the body to have,but too much inside you causes liver failure. In this case, it's so concentrated that it serves as a sort of poison."

Raven's brow furrowed.

"Terra," called Raven, pointing at the left wall of her room. "Get the book on the shelf there—more to the left—a bit more… There, that one, bring it here."

When the book was placed in front of her, Raven flipped through the pages, looking down the index. Finding what she needed, she opened to the correct page.

"_Inveterasco Riverso_," she said, causing confusion to flash across the faces of everyone present; except, of course, for herself and Beast Boy. "It's a potion that makes you vomit the poison, sort of cleansing you… But I—"

"You are able to concoct this potion, are you not?" Starfire asked her.

"Yeah, I can, but… I'm gonna need some time…" she said, looking down the list of ingredients and heading for her shelves, picking up several jars with colors that changed, when noticed, changed the darkness of Raven's room. Something that looked oddly like a purple worm wiggled around in a jar, frantically trying to escape. Robin, Terra, and Cyborg grimaced as Starfire positively glowed with delight.

"What is that glorious creature?" she asked excitedly.

"A venomous tape-worm."

Starfire's outstretched hand stopped in mid air as her eyes went wide in horror.

"Why the hell would you wanna put something poisonous into a cure!" Terra asked loudly. Raven glared at her.

"You wanna make it, be my guest," she replied coldly. Terra's momentary shocked face melted away. "I need all of you to get out of my room so I can make this."

No one said anything. They knew better than to question Raven in any way, so all of them stepped over the threshold to her room, eyeing the wiggling tape-worm with disgust as Terra closed the door behind them.

_Finally_, thought Raven, pulling more ingredients from the shelves. Somewhere to the left, she heard Beast Boy stirring on her bed.

"You're gonna be okay, I promise," she told him out loud, "it's a complicated potion, so you better be damn grateful for what I'm doing for you."

The faintest outline of a smile came across her face.

"Not that I wouldn't make it anyways… Oh great, now I'm talking to you. I'm talking to a temporary vegetable… with the color of one too."

The cauldron began to sizzle vehemently as a now squealing tape-worm was dropped in, turning the mixture a bright yellow.

"Look, I know I've been a real bitch to her, Beast Boy," said Raven, the yellow substance reminding her of Terra for some reason. "And I know you're really pissed off at me for that, but I have my reasons. No, it's not because I have feelings for you, as I'm sure she suspects. I just still don't trust her. She put us all through way too much for me to trust her again so easily. I mean, give me a break; it's been two days that she's been back. If you really expected me to welcome her with a big warm hug and cookies then you don't know me at all."

Waiting patiently, she watched the contents of the cauldron flashing different colors as the bubbles rose from the heat power she provided with her hands, hissing and spitting in an unearthly fashion.

"But I will tell you this: I know she's changed, and I know she regrets and that she really is sorry," she continued, stirring the contents with her mind as her finger went in a circle above the surface of the antidote. "It's just gonna take me some time, alright? You and I both know I'm not that accepting, but just be glad I haven't thrown her out on her ass."

She carefully glanced at the watch on the table, waiting for the very second in which she had to put in the next ingredient. When she threw it in, the mixture had turned a gleaming white color, and she waited the fifteen and a half seconds she needed to before she stirred it once to the right, three times to the left, and back to the right again before the time was up. Finally, it had turned the ocean blue color it was supposed to. Raven took the glass vial and levitated some of the mixture into it, hoping that it wouldn't melt away the small container, and walked over to Beast Boy.

"She really loves you, you know?" she told him, putting the potion to his lips and opening his mouth with her hand. Beast Boy coughed.

"H-how do you know?" he asked her. Raven was momentarily shocked. Had he not been asleep while she was speaking to him?

_That little faker…_ she thought. _Is he even sick?_

Beast Boy let out a hacking couch as he clutched at his throat, groaning in pain.

_No, of course he is. No one can projectile vomit like that of their own will…_

"I thought you were sleeping," she said, glaring at him.

"I was… but I started waking up when you said _look, I know I've been a bitch_," Beast Boy said, half ashamed at his intrusion. "How do you know she loves me?"

Raven grinned slightly.

"Did you forget that I can read minds?"


	8. Almost

A/N: Okay... so it's been about 3 years since I updated this story. I highly doubt anyone remembers it, and I will probably be re-writing all the other chapters (for grammatical purposes. I will not alter the story). I just recently got back into the Teen Titans swing, so I thought I'd continue this. Umm... enjoy?

* * *

The following week went by slowly for the Titans. As Beast Boy's health recovered, they spent most of their days in the tower, the lack of chaos or attacks beginning to make them feel amazingly bored. The city was almost too quiet sometimes. Robin had to admit (to himself only, for he would say no such thing out loud) that he was craving the excitement and adrenaline rush of a battle. He started to get jumpy at a lot of things… If Cyborg happened to have some weird gadget running around the hallways, Robin would jump and attack it somehow, be it by throwing his birdarang at it or smacking it with his staff, almost hoping that it was an intruder in Titans Tower. None of them would say it, but they all felt the same. Eventually, our Boy Wonder had to find comfort in destroying virtual foes on Cyborg's computer. Cyborg spent most of the time making new gadgets, playing video games with Robin, or experimenting in the kitchen with Starfire, trying to find a way for mustard to actually taste normal. Terra usually stayed either in her room or in Beast Boy's, talking to him and keeping him company while Raven stayed in her room to meditate, as usual. Starfire, however, found other ways to stay entertained rather than making mustard cookies.

"Friends! I have discovered a glorious thing! Look!" she exclaimed, jumping in front of Cyborg and waving something around in his face. Cyborg screamed, stepping back in alarm.

"Star, don't touch that! It's a cockroach!" he cried out, eyes widening as the bug crawled on her hand.

"Ew," said Raven monotonously, looking at the brown insect with disgust. "Starfire, put it down for a second."

"I shall!" said Starfire, lowering the roach to the floor before Raven quickly zapped it with her power and returned to her room. Starfire screamed, her eyes glazing over with tears. "Roachie! No!"

"It's all right, Star," Robin told her, putting an arm around her and leading her away from her beloved, yet briefly lived, pet roach. "Uh, he's in a better place now…"

"Oh, Robin, I must ask you," she said, forgetting all about Roachie. "Why when friend Terra was holding on to Beast Boy did you make us leave the room? I wished to hug him as well, but Raven did not let me!" she told him, crossing her arms in a huff.

"Well, uh, you see…" began Robin, unsure of how to explain Beast Boy and Terra's relationship to the young Tamaranian. "I wanted to give them some alone time, you know?"

"Alone time?" she inquired, looking at him curiously. "Why would anyone wish to be alone?"

"Well," began Robin, taking a breath. "It's not that they wish to be alone… not by themselves anyway. They probably wanna be alone together—"

"But how can one be alone and be with someone at the same time?" she questioned, confused at the supposed paradox. Robin smiled at her. It was always tricky explaining abstract things such as these to her, but he didn't mind. It gave him a chance to talk to her, anyways.

"No, that's not what I mean. They just—well at least I think they did—need some time to be alone, just them two, so they could talk," he explained as they started walking down an empty hallway.

"Talk?"

"Well, yeah… I mean after the way things left off… I'm assuming Terra has some explaining to do."

"Yes, I suppose you are right." Starfire looked down rather sadly.

"What's wrong?" Robin asked, peeking down at her face which was partially out of view. She was crying. "Starfire? What is it? Are you okay?" he asked panickedly.

"Yes, Robin, I am O-K. I just hope our friends are O-K too. Beast Boy was so sad when Terra—oh I do not know what I am trying to say. I just—" she blurted, trying to form her thoughts into sentences. "I do not wish to ever again see Beast Boy that sad."

"Hey," Robin began, soothingly putting an arm around her shoulders. "She's made a lot of mistakes, and I don't completely trust her yet… but something tells me it's gonna be ok. They're gonna be ok."

"How do you know?" Starfire asked, sniffling.

"I—well… I _don't_know" he said truthfully. "But I hope so. I think he loves her and, judging by the frightening amount of crying she's done, I think she feels the same way… or something. I don't know… I'm not really good at those kinds of things—"

"What things?"

"Umm, well. Love and stuff…" he coughed out, turning his head away in embarrassment. His cheeks were burning, and he momentarily feared his mask would slip off due to the waterfall of sweat threatening to fall from his brow.

"Love?"

He turned to look at her. _Oh, great, now I have to explain LOVE to her?! How do you get yourself into these situations?! What the hell are you gonna say?!_

"Uh…" he began. Unfortunately, the sentence didn't go beyond that.

_Say SOMETHING!_

"Uh… well, when two people really care about each other—" he started to say, intensely aware of how cliché, vague, and out of character he sounded, and fearing that his conversation would now turn into the Birds and the Bees. He stumbled for words when Starfire started to giggle.

"Robin, I know what _love_ means," she said, still giggling, her cheeks pink.

"Oh…" he replied, embarrassed as he could possibly ever be, his eyes glued to the floor. He mustered a small smile, but when he looked up, Starfire was very close to him. He gulped, but couldn't seem to look away. Somehow they had managed to walk into a corner of an empty hallway, somewhere near Cyborg's room. An unexpected sense of daring came over him as he reached his hand up to her beautiful cheek, looking into her purely green eyes. He was barely aware that he had taken a couple of steps forward, closing the space between them and the corner of the hallway. Starfire felt her hands touch the wall, and she reached up to touch his cheek.

They were very close.

He could feel the breath from her lips on his chin.

Something inside him should have been screaming at him to stop, or go, or something. His mind, however, was elsewhere. The minute she touched his cheek his eyes fluttered closed. Her other hand was lost in his hair. His hands had moved from her face down to her waist, holding her like she was something precious and delicate, something that would break under his fingers if he wasn't careful. Their lips were so close that he could have sworn he felt them brush, but knew somewhere that they hadn't. Her finger caressed his face, and he barely registered that she had started to remove his mask until it was almost too late. He came to, pulling back in shock and adjusting his mask, almost gasping for breath.

They stared at each other intently for no more than five seconds, but it seemed much longer. Starfire started to apologize.

"Robin, I—"

"We should be getting back to the—the… the team." Robin interrupted, pressing his mask down again. He gulped, trying and failing not to think about what had just happened, and turned away from Starfire, briskly walking back to the main room.

Starfire looked down at the floor, tears in her eyes. She didn't know why she so badly wanted to see his eyes. She supposed she just didn't want to look at a mask anymore—to see the real Robin… to see "Richard." But it wasn't going to happen, just as the kiss she had almost received probably wouldn't happen either. She silently wished that Beast Boy and Terra would have better luck, but some part of her envied them.

"I am sorry… Robin…" she whispered, her feet dejectedly carrying her back to her room. "Please…forgive me."


End file.
